Dying For Your Love
by Dr34mer
Summary: we all know Yuki and Kyo have feelings for Tohru, but what happens when she's kidnapped by Akito and Shigure isn't there? it's up to a cat and a rat to save her... together? rated for later violence.
1. in the mind of a rat

My first Fruits Basket fanfic! WHOOT!

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Yuki had been watching her every movement. And she hadn't noticed him yet either. Cooking as usual. She is so naïve and unknowing; how could she not notice his feelings for her? Can't she take the hint?:

"oh I _love_ strawberries!"

"I thought you might, that's why I'm planting them." _I'm planting them just for you!_

"oh! I couldn't go on a date-!"

"yes, a date." _I want you to know and love me, why don't you see it?_

"I want to go home…"

"well in that case…!" _why else would I be back for you? I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you!_

She'd probably never understand. "miss Honda?" Yuki called in his soothing voice.

"yes, Yuki?" she turned her head, the rest of her focusing on her task.

"what masterpiece are you making today, may I ask?"

"oh! No! it's not that good, I mean, I hope you like it! But it's nothing like a _masterpiece_ it's just a new recipe. But I'll stop if you don't like trying anything new! I can go back to making riceba-" Yuki's finger quickly lay on her lips. Tohru stopped and blushed, realising she was getting a little carried away. "… strawberry muffins," she stated, simply.

Yuki smiled. "I can't wait. And I'm _sure_ it'll be delicious." Then he added under his breath "like you."

"huh?" she asked, muffled by his finger.

"and new. I said delicious and new."_ Or at least that's what I want you to think I said._

At that time, Shigure entered the kitchen. "AW! Someone has a crush on someone!" he sang, seeing Yuki so close to Tohru's face. Yuki snatched his finger away as quickly as he could.

"Shigure, you're crazy," he stated, _I don't have a crush, I'm in love!_

"then _why_ were you flirting with the beautiful Tohru?"

"oh, no! Yuki wasn't doing anything like that! I mean, why would he be doing that to me? Not that I wouldn't allow that! No, that came out wrong; what I'm trying to say is that Yuki was only doing-" the finger returned. "… that," she mumbled. He seemed to make things so much easier to say.

Shigure turned on his heel, humming a very annoying tune. "you can't deny it!" and finally left.

Yuki silently grunted. Shigure already knows he likes Tohru but why does he always have to make it so obvious? What if Tohru had found out (even though that's highly unlikely since she was really naïve)? Would she still treat him the way she usually did? All these frustrating thoughts raced through his head as his rat ears appeared which hadn't happened in a long time.

"Yuki?"

she had caught him off guard and he transformed.

"Yuki!" she said, worriedly. "what's wrong? Are you okay? Is something bothering you? I didn't nudge into you by accident, did I? are you just angry? Oh gosh! Are you angry at me?!" she picked him up in her hands.

Yuki had always loved the softness of her hands when she picked him up; so comforting and safe. "no, miss Honda, of course it's not the slightest bit your fault." _It's _all_ your fault! It's because I love you so much. Why must you be so perfect?_

"Yuki, if there's something wrong, I'm always here to listen if you want someone to talk to," she gave her warm smile. The rat's heart melted as all he could do was stare up at the gentleness of her beautiful face.

"miss Honda, I have a confession to make."

Tohru was all ears. The look on her face was adorable!

"miss Honda… I l-"

POOF!

She shrieked and turned as fast as she could. Yuki grabbed his clothes, blushing furiously. _What the hell was I thinking?! I can't tell her that! There's no telling what she'll think of me! So what do I do? Just suppress all my feelings for her like I would do anyone else?_ As he got dressed, he couldn't help but wonder what feelings Tohru had for him? does she like him too? Or did she hate him, but not show it?

"I'm sorry about that, miss Honda." He left before Tohru could blabber on about how he doesn't have to apologise. But left her confused as well. What was that all about?

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this chapter was actually pretty dull… please stay with the story, it'll spice up!! I promise!!

Please review…


	2. strawberry muffins!

Forgive me if I kind of mix up characters, I'm sort of working on two fanfics at the moment…!

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Tohru pulled the muffins out of the oven. Shigure ran through the kitchen and away from an angry Kyo.

"GIVE IT BACK, DAMN DOG!"

"come and get it!" he said, playfully, prancing around the house. "oh, Tohru, Kyo's bullying me! Make him stop!"

Kyo had already caught up to him and… -due to the gruesome events I am not allowed to describe what is happening.

Kyo brushed himself off while Tohru worried over Shigure's mangled body. Tears streamed down his face while Tohru tried to make up her mind about what she should do. Kyo snatched a muffin and shoved it in his mouth. "Kyo, those are hot!" Tohru warned but it was too late, he had already spat it out and running ice cold water over his tongue.

"why the hell do you leave them out where anyone can get to them if you know they're HOT?!" he complained, his cat ears sticking up again.

"I… I didn't mean-!" she cut off with a scream as the cat was thrown to the floor by Yuki's foot.

"stupid cat, you should be more careful next time instead blaming poor miss Honda. And besides, you know very well it's not her fault, you just don't like admitting you're wrong!" he announced, indicating to Tohru that they'll both be okay.

Kyo picked himself up instantly, raging. "you dirty rat! You think everyone _but_ me is right! And you're only defending Tohru coz you have a crush on her-!" he got a mouthful of fist as Yuki attempted to not blush.

"damn cat, you know you shouldn't make up stuff like that," he said as calmly as possible. Then he kicked him unconscious.

"Kyo!" she shrieked, her head shooting from the cat to the dog, not knowing which one to care for first.

"miss Honda, I advise you not to believe anything these two idiots say." He turned but before he left he said: "and don't bother trying to help them, they'll just end up like that again tomorrow."

He went, leaving Tohru completely helpless; two people were injured, probably badly, yet she was told not to help…?

-star- -star- -star-

about an hour later, Shigure entered the living room (A/N: or main room, whatever you want to call it). He had a huge bandage around his head and one arm in a sling that Tohru kindly provided. He tasted one of the muffins and began with his praises. "oh, Tohru! How lucky we are to have you here, you could write your own cook book!"

"oh, no, it's not _that_ good. It was just a little experiment, that's all!"

"modest, too. The perfect wife for either Yuki or Kyo! Mostly Yu- OUCH!" (A/N: you can probably guess what happened…)

Yuki also tasted a muffin and agreed with Shigure… well, except the marriage thing. "mmm… delicious!"

"oh… well, I'm glad you like them…." She said, shyly.

Shigure laughed, even though it pained him. "like? Tohru, you think to little of yourself! Adore would be more appropriate!"

Tohru kind of squeaked, not knowing how to take the compliment. Kyo, who was still having a little mood swing, sat in the corner. He wanted to have a muffin so much but refused to give in. if he did, he knew Yuki would pester him to apologise to Tohru for what he did earlier. Then again, he could probably tell Tohru how much Yuki likes her… but then he would probably end up with another hundred bruises.

"Kyo, you simply _must_ try some of dear Tohru's muffins! The soft texture of the crumbly surface, the thick strawberry centre jam oozing down the throat, delighting ever taste bud, and then the satisfaction of knowing we have such a wonderful housewife-" he moaned in pain as Kyo's fist shot to his soft head.

"stop calling her that!" he commanded.

Shigure meekly nodded in pain otherwise the agony would have been unbearable.

Kyo badly wanted one now, especially after that description. He could probably get away with stealing one when they all fell asleep? But they may be all gone by then; Tohru only made a few since she was just playing with ingredients.

"Kyo, would you like one?" Tohru offered, holding the plate up to him.

Kyo looked at them for a while, trying to make it seem like he wasn't very interested. "_alright_!" he said, as if he were forced to take one. He snatched a muffin from the plate, making Tohru jump. He stuck it in his mouth and chewed slowly to savour the taste.

"how is it?" she asked.

_A taste of heaven!_ "not bad," he said, muffled a little. _More, more, more!_ He hated himself for scoffing it down so quickly.

To his surprise, Yuki stayed silent. No comments or anything. It made him feel even more guilt as he assumed that the rat was giving him the guilt trip. How could Tohru like such an emotionless person? What made her think he was so special? Why did she prefer Yuki to him?

_Stupid cat, are your taste buds as weak as your brain?_ Yuki was not going to speak to anyone who could be so inconsiderate. How could she just sit there, smile and be so nice to someone like Kyo? Does she just suppress her feelings and cover them up? What's her secret? But then he began to think; does she like Kyo more than him? is that the reason she always tolerates his behaviour?

He pushed all of these thoughts aside and tried to focus on other things… like learning to drive so Shigure could get to the hospital quicker.


	3. the beginning of it all

That night, Tohru found herself tossing and turning in her sleep; if you could call it that. She kept getting these disturbing thoughts that told her to stay alert. The problem was that she wasn't very sure what it was so she didn't know if she should. For the few minutes she actually managed to squeeze in some sleep, she had had a nightmare; a shadow followed her everywhere she went, it wouldn't allow her to rest.

It wasn't until she decided to give up and get out of bed at about 4.00am that she noticed the sweat beads rolling down her face. What was going on? Tohru stood and opened a window, allowing the cold breeze to cool her down. Somehow it felt as though the shadow she'd seen in her dream was still haunting her – why? She steeped away from the open air, realising it was probably that toying with her mind.

She came to a decision that it was probably just her mind playing tricks on her since she had had hardly any sleep. She thought that if she ate something, Tohru would probably fall asleep so made her way down to the kitchen, after sneaking a peek through all the rooms to make sure everyone was okay.

It was only Yuki and Kyo she went to check on since Shigure was out for the night. He, Hatori, and Ayame. He called it a 'business' trip but everyone knew it was like a little reunion where Shigure and Ayame did nothing but mess about and marvel at lad's mags while Hatori sat annoyed at them both… just like old times.

Tohru opened the refrigerator door and browsed through. There was nothing that interested her much but she just took out the milk, completely aware that it wouldn't be very helpful to her.

Then, as she turned to pour a glass, a sudden chill ran down her spine and made her spin round in shock. Nothing. She was just being silly. It was impossible that she was being followed. Why would anyone follow an ordinary high school girl? (A/N: besides Shigure!) then again, she was living with three boys that come from a family a animals when they are hugged; nothing was normal anymore!

Then, all at once, Tohru gasped, dropped her glass with shattered a small explosion on the ground and she screamed a blood curdling scream that woke both the boys.

"Tohru!" shouted Kyo, "miss Honda!" shouted Yuki, flinging their bed covers aside and zoomed to her aid… but couldn't. She was gone.

What happened? Why was she screaming? Where was she now? Kyo stood and stared at the smashed glass. All the facts had pieced together in his head but, being the stubborn guy he is, refused to believe it. Yuki knew she was gone but had no idea what he was going to do about it.

"why?" Yuki said after a long period of silence. "why does it have to be her?"

"what do you mean?" Kyo asked.

"you stupid cat, can't you see she's been kidnapped!?" Yuki snapped, standing up.

Kyo clenched his fists and began to shout. "of course I knew that! I meant what do you mean by 'why does it have to be her'?!"

Yuki stopped. He didn't actually know what he meant either, it was subconscious. He needed to make something up to stop him from looking stupid. "that doesn't matter. What _does_ matter is finding miss Honda. You stay here until Shigure comes back and-"

"WHAT!? I'm not gonna just sit here knowing that Tohru's been kidnapped! I bet all you want is the credit for finding her! You want her to like yo-!"

"just shut up and wait." He made for the door but Kyo grabbed Yuki by the shoulder which resulted in his being thrown across the floor.

He groaned but forced himself up again. "I'm going too, and you can't stop me!"

Yuki sighed in frustration, knowing that there was no time for an argument. So he just snatched his jacket and scarf then left, allowing Kyo to follow.


	4. a different point of view

Yuki and Kyo just kept walking. Where to? Where was Tohru? Where would anyone want to take… actually they both decided not to think of those possibilities.

The rat suddenly stopped walking and exhaled deeply. "this isn't helping, we're probably just walking around in circles. All this walking is pointless unless we know where she is!"

Kyo slid his hands in his pockets, too tired to get angry. "well, you're the one that just kept walking for no reason."

"so you're implying that it's my fault she's been kidnapped? I don't see you giving any useful suggestions," he said, then carried on walking straight past him.

the cat caught up, wondering what he was doing. "now where are you going?"

"to the house," Yuki replied simply, holding his jacket tightly together as the cold weather hit him.

"so you're just going to give up?!" Kyo yelled, unsure if this was the real Yuki Sohma speaking.

"of course not, stupid cat…" he turned at a corner then continued. "… I'm going to Sohma house."

He followed on, still not liking the idea of allowing Yuki to lead but Kyo had no choice; he didn't exactly know _why_ they were going there. Yuki saw that Kyo was in deep thought and broke the silence. "if you think I'm only going to get her for the credit then why did you come?"

Kyo blushed. "well… I'm not gonna just sit at home like some damn lazy ass. Besides, what good is it waiting for Shigure? He's not gonna magically make her come back or nothing." Well that wasn't exactly a lie, it was just half of the truth and he'd thought it wasn't bad coz half is better than nothing… right? _I want her to know that I love her too and, hopefully, I'll have just as much chance as Yuki to get her. He always gets all the girls and it aint fair; why is it that the girl I want could fall for that damn rat?_

"and why do you assume I'm only going to get credit? Perhaps I just like to know miss Honda is safe."

"oh, come on, Yuki! We all know you like her. Why else are you only really nice to her and not your own family?" he went to find an expression of shame in his face but it was emotionless.

"stupid cat, I treat people the way they treat me and miss Honda happens to be very kind and caring-"

"Shigure's never done anything!" he said in confidence that he would win the argument.

Yuki grunted. "that's different. Shigure is annoying and loud."

"what about Ayame? He's always trying to be nice to you but you just push him away!"

there was a few moments of silence before Yuki finally sighed. "you know very well why I treat him the way I do. Now just drop it!" he pulled his jacket on tighter and shivered, his pace slowing down slightly.

"what the matter with you?" Kyo said in a kind of cold yet curious way, noticing that he had started to hunch over.

"what the hell do you mean? I had to come out in my pyjamas, it's freezing and I have a lung problem!"

"I know that! I'm not stupid!"

"you don't seem to be doing much to prove me wrong." Yuki retorted, calmly.

"SHUT UP, YOU DAMN RAT!"

"shh… it's 3.00am" he whispered, lightly pressed a finger to his lips.

A pulse appeared on Kyo's head but he kept quiet. He realised this was no time to get worked up.

-star- -star- -star-

Tohru's wrists and ankles had been tied together with a very strong rope sitting with her knees to her chest. She didn't understand why; she wasn't strong string enough to even get through a rope. Then she began to wonder if she could wriggle her thin hands through but it was no use.

"I'd stop doing that it I were you, it'll only result in rope burns," said a cold and sinister voice from behind her.

She gasped and turned her head to see Akito staring at her like any other person in the street, with no emotion. It scared her more than if he had a face of rage since she couldn't tell what he was feeling, therefore could not guess what he was going to do. Plus, she was too paralysed to ask why she was taken away.

"pathetic," Akito spat. "I don't see why those three idiots are so fond of you, you look so worthless! Why don't you just go home to your damned grandfather?"

the harsh words made Tohru curl up in fear. She didn't know how to answer.

"say something! Or are you too stupid to answer?" he waited for a reply but she just shivered. The window was open, it was a cold night and she was wearing very thin pyjamas. "ANSWER ME!" Akito ragged her down by the hair, throwing the frightened teen to the floor. "WHEN I SAY 'ANSWER ME' I EXPECT YOU TO DO AS I TELL YOU TO!"

tears gathered in her eyes as she struggled to get up in her awkward position. "I don't know…" she murmured, barely audible.

"what did you say?" his tone made her afraid to repeat herself.

"I… I said I don't know."

He sneered. Akito grabbed her by the arm to get her up. Tohru stumbled to her feet but found herself being shoved to the floor once again, landing on her shoulder really hard. She bit her lip and tried her best to hold back a cry of pain.

"so you're just another idiot. You think Shigure, Yuki and Kyo actually _like_ you? Huh! They're just decent enough to let you live with them without saying a word. All you're really good for is cooking and cleaning!" that's when he heard the hiccup she'd been trying to hide.

"… I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude in your family affairs…" even though her hair was shadowing her eyes, tracks of tears were clearly visible. She used the arm that didn't hurt to push herself up so she could sit properly. "… I needed a home… I was being selfish because I didn't want to live in the same house as my aunt, uncle and cousin… I'm sorry…" she whimpered.

Akito's face coiled with anger. His hand swung at full force to Tohru's face, knocking her back down. All of her efforts seemed pointless so she just lay there, weeping…

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-sniffles- where's that box of tissues go…?

Please review!


	5. please, stop!

The boys arrived at Sohma house. It seemed to peaceful to be safe.

"why the hell did you bring us out here?"

"be quiet," Yuki ordered.

Kyo opened his mouth to shout something back but Yuki's mouth gagged him and then hit him to the floor. He rubbed his head, firing up. "don't make a sound. We don't want them to know we're here," Yuki whispered.

Kyo thought it'd be better to whisper. "let _who_ know we're here?"

"shh! Just listen!"

they both then opened their ears and remained silent… cries. Tohru's cries. Kyo looked up to the window where Akito usually sits and stares. There.

"so…" Yuki said, rage in his voice. "Akito's at it again."

"that bastard! Who knows what he's doing to her!"

-star- -star- -star-

"stop your whining!" Akito commanded. "are you that weak?"

Tohru couldn't help the overflow of tears she cried. The pain was unbearable. "please…" she begged. "… please stop… I'm so sorry…!"

"sorry?!" he screamed, pushing her head to the floor with his hand keeping it in place. Tohru winced as her cheek fell on an earlier cut. "sorry won't undo the past! You think you could keep a secret like ours? Think again! You'll turn on us sooner or later!"

"no! I would never do anything to-"

"don't try to defend yourself! You'll never be accepted by us!" he held a tighter grip to her hair and lifted her but Tohru could not support herself as her whole body was crying out in agony so she was literally dangling from the roots of her locks. She gasped in pain when the door flew open.

Yuki and Kyo stood at the doorway panting and eyes widening to the sight of Tohru with bruises and cuts everywhere. "Tohru!" Kyo yelled, dashing to her aid. Akito shoved her out of the way and as Kyo ran and kicked him in the stomach. Kyo hunched over in pain.

"Kyo!" Tohru screamed, struggling over to him.

Akito reached into his kimono and pulled out what looked like a stick… Yuki looked closer and found it was a whip. He snapped it in front on Tohru. "stay in your place!"

She stared helplessly at the injured cat but was too afraid to go any further in case she got hurt. Akito turned to Yuki who had stood there still in shock, especially after seeing the whip snap. It flooded his mind with memories. He just stared at Akito's smug expression filled with evil. The rat couldn't seem to move. At the corner of his eye, he saw Tohru still struggling – with her wrists and ankle still tied- to Kyo's aid, not caring about her own needs. She knew she more badly hurt than he was.

Yuki thought of his own fear and suffering and asked himself why he held back? Tohru was obviously scared of being hit again but went on for someone else. All he could do was stand there, cowering. Why couldn't he just face Akito, despite the past?

"aw… you're not still afraid of me, are you?" he laughed, stepping slowly closer. "what's the matter, Yuki? Are you still that helpless little boy that can't stand up for himself?" he whipped the ground in front Yuki which resulted in him stumbling back onto the floor.

"you'll never change, will you?" he walked closer to him, tightening the whip between his hands.

He kept backing away as Akito got closer until he hit a wall. He pushed his entire body against the wall, terrified. (A/N: I'm surprised I know so many words for scared!) Akito knelt down beside him with that vicious grin upon his face. He took the whip and – because the rat seemed so motionless – wrapped it gently around his neck. "don't worry, I won't kill you… even if it feels that way…"

Yuki gasped as he felt the rope tighten around his neck. He felt his circulation slowly cut off and grabbed the torture instrument, trying to loosen it. His face screwed with the effort but he knew it wasn't his best; if it were, Akito would probably have done much worse things to him for resisting.

"YUKI!" he heard in what seemed like a long distance away.

As soon as he heard the cry, Yuki threw the whip off of his neck and kicked Akito with both legs, still trying to figure out what he had done. Akito's face flared with rage. He stood and snapped the whip at Yuki's chest, causing him to cry out in agony.

Kyo looked up in alarm. Akito was beating Yuki? He can't be that strong, could he? Especially if he always needs medical attention and stuff. Or was Yuki just holding back? Well, whatever it was, it wasn't helping them at all.

Yuki's top now had a huge tear across the middle – thankfully, it was just his jacket and probably wouldn't do any harm. The only reason he shouted was because it knocked him down. "Akito, leave miss Honda alone," he begged. "you've done enough harm to her already."

"enough!?" he bellowed, getting ready to hit him again. "you think I've even come close to enough?! I'll show you!"

"NO! YUKI!" Tohru's screams seemed to slice the air they travelled through.


	6. a slgiht problem

Both Tohru and Kyo could do nothing but try to drown out the continuous harsh snaps and shouts.

Tohru glanced at Kyo. "Kyo, undo the ropes, quick!" she held out her arms and waited.

He stared at her for a moment, not knowing what she wanted to do. "please, Kyo!" she pleaded. The cat began to scratch at them then undid the rope around her ankles. Tohru wasted no time in attempting to stand. Kyo watched her limp as fast as her injured legs would allow. Kyo couldn't shout her back because he knew it would mean Akito abusing her all over again. She shoved Akito feebly to distract him from Yuki.

"miss Honda…" he tried to keep his usual soft voice but found it to be slightly raspy. "… please… stay away from him…!"

Tohru ignored him. Akito smiled devilishly and raised the whip, ready to strike again. She threw her good arm over her head in protection as the rope streamed down at her but didn't feel a thing – just heard it. She looked up the see Yuki in front of her, holding tightly onto the other end of the whip. "don't you _dare_ harm her! She's never done anything to you!" it was the first time Tohru had heard Yuki shout in anger before and it was scary.

"… Y-Yuki?" Tohru stammered. Akito tugged on the whip to get him to stumble forward. From there his foot swung through to Yuki's stomach. "YUKI!"

He fell to the floor, curling up and hoping the torment would be over soon. _What's wrong with me? I know I can beat him but… I can't. Why do I keep holding back? Miss Honda came to try and help me even though she could hardly walk. _Yuki shoved the feel of the burns aside and stood up, shaking a little. Akito went to hit again but Yuki grabbed it and thrust it towards himself. The whip flew out of Akito's hands. Yuki threw it away from them. "can't you fight without weapons?!" he screamed, swinging a punch at Akito's face.

Tohru gasped as it sent him to the other side of the room. Kyo stared at Yuki, in disbelief of what had happened. He actually stood up to Akito? Akito stood and seemed to glide through the room with a fist held up, slashing it at Yuki's already bloody face.

Kyo made his way over to Tohru who was holding in screams of fear. "Tohru, lay down, you're hurt!" he ordered.

"no, I'm oka-"

"NOW!"

she obeyed and set herself down, not wanting Kyo to get mad at her. "do you think you've broken anything?" he asked, gently pressing a few of her joints.

"Kyo, really! I'm – AH!" she gasped.

"fine? The only thing you are is hurt! don't you dare move until we get you out of he-"

Tohru screamed as she saw Yuki being kicked out of the window and landing with a huge thump. Kyo ran as fast as he could and jumped out of the window. He leant down beside Yuki who was sprawled on the floor. "Y… Yuki?" he panicked. The only response he got was a violent cough. Yuki inhaled sharply but it looked as if it hurt really bad. He held his chest like he wanted to rip out his own heart as his nails dug through his skin. He was acting like every breath would be his last. Blood kept pouring in a thin stream down the side of his mouth and cuts covered every few inches of his face. Bruises silhouetted his features.

Akito was leaning against the side of the window, smiling. Gradually, he began to disappear into the room. Yuki hunched over. Kyo noticed that he wasn't inhaling deeply anymore. "Yuki? Yuki, what is it?!" he asked. Normally it wouldn't really bother him but he needed Yuki to beat Akito.

Yuki weakly shook his head. He didn't have the energy to speak. He felt so cold; his jacket had been ripped to shreds and his pyjamas had turned to rags.

"Yuki! We need you! You have to fight Akito!"

he shook his head again, trying hard to look up at him. "y… you… fight…" he struggled.

"what?! I can't! I mean, if you couldn't beat him then I can't come close to scraping his skin!"

"h-holding… back… go, save… m-miss Honda…!" he coughed lifelessly.

_I can't just leave him here!_


	7. one promise too much

"g…go, damn c-cat!" Yuki strained his voice. "m-miss Honda is… alone!"

Kyo got up but paused. What about Yuki? He couldn't just leave him there. He scooped Yuki up onto his back and jump up to the window. The extra weight made it difficult so the most he could do was jump as high as possible and grab onto the rim. He forced them both up but the sight before him almost made Kyo fall back down.

Akito had Tohru on the wall, holding her up by her neck. She looked as if she were choking, which she most likely was…

He set Yuki down quickly and raced towards them. Tohru was thrown to the floor again. Akito swung his arms at Kyo's neck which sent him flying a few meters away. Tohru crawled over to Yuki who was having difficulty breathing; he was clutching his chest and had managed to curl up on his knees. "Yuki!" she screeched, she would've waved her arms about frantically if it didn't hurt so much. She had no idea what she should do; the last time this happened, Haru had taken care of it, plus, Hatori was there. She was completely helpless; she didn't even have a jacket to keep him warm since his jacket had been torn to shreds.

Kyo stood no chance against Akito. He couldn't even manage to swing a single punch his way. He looked almost as bad as Yuki did; at least Yuki had a chance to hurt him a little. Kyo lay on the floor, paralysed with pain. Akito rest a foot onto his chest and began to step on him hard. The cat gave a few cries; he was sure his rib cage would give way soon enough. At that time, he didn't care; he just wanted so much to die and be rid of the pain. Suddenly, the weight was lifted off of him.

"what's gotten into you?!" Haru exclaimed, holding Akito down by the arms.

Akito (A/N: do we ever find out his zodiac form? I couldn't be bothered reading the manga, so I would appreciate it if someone could tell me…) kicked Hatsuharu off. "can't you see?" Akito shouted back. "she's a threat to us!" he went to hit Haru again but all of a sudden-

"STOP!" Tohru screamed, attempting to stand with only one leg to support her. She stumbled over as fast as she could go. "please, stop." She fell at Akito's feet. Haru watched in amazement at her courage. "don't hurt them anymore… I'll do anything."

"Tohru, sat away!" Kyo struggled, rolling to his side.

"anything?" Akito said, just provoking the moment. "would you sacrifice your own memory ?"

"no!" the boys insisted, even though two of them were straining themselves.

"if it means they'll be safe…" she whispered, not quite proud of herself but thankful she could save them.

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short but don't worry, plenty more to come!


	8. remember what you forgot

You know, the more reviews I get, the more I'm encouraged to write… joke, review when you want! –holds gun to reader's head-

By the way, I'm going to Paris on Sunday 5am so… this'll be the last update for about a week, two weeks tops. –innocent smile- don't shoot me… -remembers she has the gun-

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Haru, being in his white state, obeyed Akito by calling Hatori back from his little 'vacation'. After that delightful little chat about everyone getting beaten to death, he hung up and went to help out the others. And by 'others' I mean Yuki and Kyo; Akito made Tohru stay with him. Haru didn't question since he didn't want to say anything that may lead to Tohru being hurt again. She sat curled up on the floor with her legs to her chest. Akito grimaced at her. "coward…"

She looked up at him with her big red eyes filled with worry. "I-I'm sorry… I didn't mean-"

"shut up!" he ordered. "as soon as Hatori arrives your memory will be erased and you'll have to find a new home. You better have a place in mind because I can assure you that we will _not_ help you find a home. You can live on the streets for all I care!"

Tohru had tears streaming down her cheeks that she tried desperately tried to hold in.

"do you ever stop crying?!" he shouted, raising a hand and threatening to strike again.

Tohru flinched at the sight and screwed her face up in hope she wouldn't feel too much pain. Luckily he didn't hit her this time but laughed at her fear. "you're worthless…"

"why do you hate me?" she asked, but it came out as more of a squeak.

"I don't hate you," he answered. Tohru shot her head up in surprise. "I loath you, despise you, want you _dead_! But I can't kill you because you still have a family and they'll be suspicious."

She lowered her head further down until she felt a sharp grip tug her neck upwards. "are you ignoring me?!"

Tohru shook her head quickly even if it proved very hard with someone holding onto her hair tightly. "no!" her scalp felt like it was being ripped from her skull.

Akito shoved her head back, releasing her. This time she didn't fall to the floor; she'd quickly learnt how to handle the pushes.

"Akito, don't harm her." Came a voice from the doorway. "it won't mean anything in the end." Hatori walked through casually and stood in front of him.

"you took your time, didn't you?" Akito said.

"I was with Shigure and Ayame, what do you expect?" he looked down at the frightened Tohru. "she's been with us for a long time, why is it now that you want to erase her memory Akito?"

Tohru's eyes shot open in shock as her entire body trembled visibly. She made no sound but had tears falling endlessly to the ground. "don't tell me you haven't noticed, Hatori. That stupid cat and rat refuse to come to Sohma house anymore unless this meaningless little-"

"watch your language, Akito," Hatori warned. "she needs to recover first. We can't just leave her injured and allow her to walk around the city aimlessly. People would wonder why she's so hurt and find out it was someone here. Then they'd want to know why you beat her up so badly."

He gave Hatori a disgusted expression. "if you must, but make sure it's quick. The longer she stays here the more tempted I'll be to do it all over again."

Akito walked to the balcony before adding. "you can take her away now. I don't want her in my way until it's done."

The dragon (A/N: that I found to be a seahorse) leant down beside Tohru and lifted her chin gently up so she was facing him. "do you think you can walk?"

She used her right arm to help herself up but stumbled back down. Her whole body hurt so much that she didn't notice the huge prangs of pain that had been shooting through her leg. Tohru still struggled to stand but the doctor stopped her. "don't strain yourself; it'll slow down your recovery." He figured he would take the risk of transforming and carry her. If he did it right, he wouldn't transform.

Hatori slid his right arm behind Tohru's back then his left behind her knees. She hooked one of her arms around his neck and rest the other on her stomach to ease the pain slightly. He took her through what seemed like a countless number of doors before he got to one that seemed really dull and lifeless. The walls were an off-white colour and most of the furniture was grey or wooden. Even the bed was a very dismal off-white and tucked in so neatly that at first glance it would seem to be a mattress. Hatori set her down gently onto a sofa. He wouldn't allow Tohru to get up and left her to lay there while he went to get the bandages and whatever else he thought was necessary.

He returned with a bag of bandages, cotton buds, cottons wool and some sort of liquid that Tohru couldn't identify. "do you think you've broken anything?" Hatori asked, pressing on her good arm.

"um… I – I don't know," she answered. She remembered that Kyo had done and said the same thing to her and wondered how he'd learnt that… she soon realised that it was probably from his time training in the woods; he had to take care of himself and stuff. That was usually his explanation for being able to do unexpected things.

The doctor had reached her sore arm and softly pushed a finger onto the most sensitive area of the wound. Tohru let out a sharp but silent gasp. As soon as he heard it, Hatori lifted her arm, asked her to bend it and tell him if she felt any pain. With a little creak of her elbow, Tohru felt in prang up and flare all the way up. "that hurts…" she said, not wanting to be much of a bother.

He put out his index finger by her arm. "squeeze on my finger as hard as you can," he told her.

Tohru did as she was told but no matter how hard she squeezed, to Hatori it felt like nothing more that a quick nudge. She stooped and he took his finger away. "I think you have a sprain in your shoulder, it should be back to normal in less than a month… not that you'll remember any of what I'm going to tell you in the future."

Tohru cradled her arm close to her body. "why do you have to erase me memory? I don't want to forget you. I love you all so much…"

Hatori didn't reply soon, leaving his face blank from all emotions. A few sudden aches burst through his chest but he didn't show it. If he did this, he'd be going through the exact same thing he had went through with Kana. He wasn't sure if he could handle the same thing again. "I… I'm sorry. We have to obey Akito. If we don't, something terrible may happen to you."

"I'd rather have that terrible thing happen than forget my friends."

Hatori hated himself for having to hear that and knowing he couldn't go back on Akito's word. It was strange how he managed to keep a straight face with all the sadness he felt. The most likely reason was that he'd taught himself to shield off things like this. "… you're a brave girl, Tohru."

She gulped trying to decide whether she should ask him her next question. Finally she plucked up the courage and began to speak: "did Kana ever remember anything about you?"

The doctor held his tongue and, for a moment, his breath. He opened his mouth to speak when…

"Tohru!" came a child-like voice from the doorway. "are you okay?!" Momiji ran in screaming. He jumped up to hug her but Hatori grabbed him just in time.

"you can't hug her, she's hurt! you'll just make it worse!" plus, he didn't want the rabbit to be able to hug her but not himself… it didn't seem fair.

Momiji stopped struggling and was put back onto the floor. "I heard what happened, that Akito is so mean!"

"no… it's not his fault. He's just worried about his family, that's all!" she attempted to convince herself that was true and to put aside the feeling of hurt, anger and sadness she felt like she'd done so many other times before.

"what did he say would happen to you?" he said, as if he needed to ask; he knew the answer but wanted to hear it from Tohru's lips and not have to believe the quick spreading rumours.

"I… er…" she struggled. "… I'm going to have my memory erased, Momiji," she smiled, feeling the corners of her lips wanting to fall.

Momiji stared at her innocently; it made her want to cry since the look reminded her of a child hearing his mother was found dead. "so it's true? i-it's finally gonna happen?" his voice quivered as he felt the back of his neck dry up and make it hard to not cry. "I don't want you to forget me, Tohru!"

She didn't what she could say to make him feel better. "… think of it as… uh, like what happened to your mom. It's exactly the same thing, you'll be able no cope, won't you?"

"no! I won't!" Momiji cried. "mama didn't love me at all so it wasn't much of a loss! It was just her being rid of me! Do you hate me too, Tohru?"

"no! of course I don't!"

"then it's completely different!" he sniffed endlessly and gasped with the effort to calm down. "I'd be losing a friend… a-and what's worse is knowing that… even if we were friend again and you didn't know about the zodiac curse then I can't hug you anymore!"

Hatori grabbed a tissue from the table beside him and handed it to the little boy. "Momiji, you know it's what's best-"

"no…" Tohru interrupted, her tears ready to spill. "… I remember what you told me, Momiji; that you want to remember everything, good or bad. I know you think this is bad but… for you it'll just be another memory. I'm not going to forget, I'm just not going to be able to remember, if that makes any sense," she weakly smiled again. "it'll all be in the past soon."

Momiji swallowed hard and hiccupped. "but I don't want it to be…" he whispered. He realised how badly injured Tohru was but really needed a hug. He threw his arms around Hatori instead and sobbed into his shoulder.

Hatori glanced at Tohru who just smiled like she was going to cry again. He decided that he'd return Momiji's hug for her sake. She was quite surprise by the reaction but found it incredibly sweet. It was a big change to see Momiji hug someone with out transforming and it was a big change to see Hatori hug someone at all.

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yeah, I want a full inbox of reviews when I get back from Paris… I think this is the longest chapter I've ever done…

yeah, who wants a happy ending and who wants a sad ending… I prefer sad but I want you all to keep reading so… yeah, there you go, it's your choice.

Anyone want a sequel?! YEAH! THAT'D BE FUN TO WRITE! (as soon as I get the inspiration, that is)


	9. doctor's orders

Yuki lay in mountains of cushions and blankets. He was boiling hot but knew he had to stay that way to recover quicker; then he could go see Tohru.

"hold still."

"OW! CAN'T YOU DO THAT A LITTLE MORE GENTLY?!" Kyo demanded, his arm being seized by Haru., who had a warm damp cloth against the cat's wounds.

"I am," he said calmly. "you're just struggling too much. That's what makes it hurt."

"I'd keep still if you were more gentle!" he snapped, snatching away his arm. Kyo had bandages around his chest and arm. Luckily that was the only damage apart from a few plasters all over and a couple of bruises. "I'm gonna go see Tohru."

"you can't go without Yuki!" said Haru with a disappointed look upon his face. "unless you're willing to carry him with you, that is…"

Kyo grunted. He knew Haru was right but didn't like the idea. Then he thought of it as Yuki needing his help for something; he couldn't do it without Kyo. "why don't you take him?" the cat asked.

"this has nothing to do with me!"

He saw Yuki toss around to face them with his eyes shut. Kyo knew he was awake, though. He sighed. "alright, alright, get up, you damn rat," he said, but not in his usual harsh tone.

Haru grabbed the biggest and warmest thing he could find, which turned out to be a kimono. He wrapped it around Yuki and slowly lifted him to his feet. Kyo hooked Yuki's left arm around his neck and helped him walk out of the room.

-star- -star- -star-

Momiji sat beside the couch were Tohru lay. Hatori had lifted the leg of her pyjamas to examine the damage done, but it made Tohru shake with nerve.

"don't worry, Tohru, I'm here for you," the rabbit assured her, softly squeezing her hand.

She smiled at him. Momiji was always so nice to her; so were all the other Sohmas in fact. She shivered as the damp cloth touched her bloody skin. Biting her lip, Tohru held her breath to keep from gasping.

The door creaked open and they saw Kyo and a nearly-conscious Yuki hanging from him. The cat dragged him over to a near-by armchair close to the couch where Yuki struggled to sit straight. Kyo leant down beside Tohru.

"a-are you both okay?" she asked, her voice flooded with worry.

Kyo smiled at the gesture. She always seemed to worry about them and not care what happened to her. "I'm fine. Yuki's still recovering but we wanted to see how you were doing."

She gasped and quickly turned to Yuki, who looked like his inside were being wringed and ripped out of him. His fists were clenched so tightly that it seemed he was trying to scratch through his palms. "y-you didn't have come if it was too much trouble for you both to get here! Yuki, you should be resting!" she stressed. "… Yuki?"

Yuki shook his head, but it was nothing more than a slight move of the neck, very lifeless. A few coughs followed but sounded as if his throat was dry. It made Tohru realise that he was much paler than usual, no matter how many colourful bruises he'd received. "I don't think he could sleep," Kyo replied for him.

"but Tohru's right," said Hatori, securing the last bandage for that leg and now moving on to the other. "you should be resting, Yuki. You know you need your strength."

Yuki did not reply. It looked like he was paying more attention to his breathing. His sleek silver hair had dampened with the moisture from his head and was covering most of his face. Tohru was getting really worried now. Yuki let out a few small coughs but managed to hold back the rest; it looked painful, though.

Hatori finally finished with Tohru's other leg but wasn't completely done yet. "boys, I need to ask you to step out for a moment. I'll call you back in about ten minutes." He requested. Kyo and Yuki both knew why and couldn't help but feel a burst of envy run through them... But as for Momiji...

"but I wanna stay here with Tohru!" he demanded.

Kyo sighed. He picked up Yuki outside and allowed him to sit on the floor, leaning against the wall. He returned for Momiji and had to drag him out by the feet. The rabbit tried to grab onto something but ended up dragging it along with them.

"why can't they stay?" Tohru asked when the door closed.

Hatori really didn't want to answer her question but knew he had to. "I still have to examine the damage... On the inside of your shirt."

Tohru's face glowed a bright crimson colour as she turned away from her. "... uh... I, er..." she stuttered.

"you can keep your underwear on," he told her. He wanted so much to bite his fist or kick himself but held his emotionless face. No matter how much he denied it, at the back of his head, he knew that he longed to see this. "I'll turn away while you take off your shirt off, if you want."

"um... a-alright..."

Hatori turned. Just the sound of her undoing the buttons filled his mind with images – ones he liked but knew he shouldn't have.

"... okay."

Hatori faced her again. He just barely resisted the urge to fall to his knees at the sight of Tohru only wearing her pyjama pants and milky-white bra. She bowed her head, holding her rolled up shirt to her legs. The doctor sat beside her and asked the sixteen-year-old to turn her back to him. He took a damp cloth and gently wiped off as much of the dried blood as he could from Tohru. He could feel her shiver as the touch of the once warm water hit her skin. Hatori knew she'd never admit to how uncomfortable she felt. "I'll warm up the water for you if you don't like it like this." Hatori offered, pausing to hear her answer.

"y-yes, please… if it's not too much trouble…"

He shook his head, even though she couldn't see him as her back was turned. "no trouble at all." He took the bowl and walked over to a kettle right next to a sink.

"why doesn't Akito trust me?" Tohru asked, the hesitation in her voice disappearing.

The doctor poured the cold water into the sink and sighed. "Akito doesn't trust anyone outside of the family. He doesn't believe you can truly understand the curse until you've lived it. Therefore he believes that any other human would give away the secret without thinking of how big the damage would be. He thinks you're no different."

"do you believe that?" she sounded a whole lot quieter as if she were deep in thought. "do you believe I'll betray the Sohma family? Especially after how nice you've all been to me?"

He filled the kettle with water and began to heat it up. Why does she have to ask _him_ these questions? Did she think he had all the answers? "no… of course I don't. I'm just a little worried." _Damn it! Why did that come out?!_ He mentally smacked himself in the head.

"worried? About what?" Tohru asked, turning to face him.

_great. I knew she'd ask that. Now I can't even hide my facial expressions unless I turn away, but that's rude… _"well… you're too honest sometimes. What if something accidentally slips?"

"I – I would never do tha-"

"_accidentally_! I'm not accusing you of anything. It's just a possibility." The kettle was boiling now. Hatori switched it off and poured the contents into the bowl. Picking it up, he saw Tohru staring at the steam dancing out of it and looking slightly worried. He turned back and added some cold tap water and checked the temperature himself.

He sat by Tohru again and pressed the damp cloth onto her back. "is that better?" he asked.

She smiled shyly. "yes, thank you… much better."

Two minutes of almost complete silence had passed and Hatori was now clearing the blood off of Tohru's stomach – for this he asked her to lay on her back again. "you know," the doctor began. "I'd have expected you to be crying a lot more that you have already."

For a moment, all he could hear was her breathing. "did Kana cry a lot before you erased her memory?"

_Why is she relating her situation to Kana_He took a deep breath. "we both did. Endlessly…"

"then why don't you still cry for her?" something about her voice made her sound really flat and toneless. Her face remained blank.

His hand movement became noticeably slower until he just eventually stopped. "… there's no point. Kana doesn't remember me and has probably found someone else to love by now. And if she's happy, I'm happy."

"you don't look or sound happy." She sat upright. "you're not really happy, are you?" Tohru gave him a look that made him want to tell the truth.

Hatori jerked his head away to lose eye contact. "that's not the point. This is about you so stop twisting it to me and Kana!"

"oh… I – I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you…"

Several large bangs came from the doorway. Tohru hurried to cover herself as fast as she could. When Hatori saw that she was fully dressed, he called: "come in."

The door burst open as Kyo ran through and falling to the floor, exhausted. "quickly… Yuki, he's…" he panted. "… he's… coughing… blood!"


	10. lolz, one of my fave chapters!

Hatori ran out to Yuki, seeing him surrounded by a pool of blood, hunched over and coughing hysterically. "Quick! Lay him down on his back!" he ordered, pulling Yuki by the shoulders away from the red liquid. Kyo helped the doctor by grabbing the rat's legs.

Momiji was told to stay with Tohru so he wouldn't get in the way. Yuki was carried into the same Tohru was in but taken to where Hatori's bed was. He quickly turned the heating up higher – though he thought it was too hot as it was but knew it would help Yuki.

(A/N: that's basically all I know about what happens when someone's bleeding internally. I tried to research what would happen for you all but I got nothing... sorry! We'll just zoom in on Tohru and Momiji!)

"Yuki's gonna be okay, right?" Momiji's innocent voice whispered to Tohru.

She couldn't lie and say he was but she didn't want to admit that she had no idea and probably break his heart. "... Yuki is... _trying_ to get well." What else could she say? The rabbit had tears starting to well up in his once optimistic eyes.

"Trying? Does that mean he could fail?"

The way Momiji acts is so child-like and unknowing but the way he thinks is far too mature for his age. It's like he asks questions on things he already knows the answer to. It was all very confusing to Tohru how he could just do that. "I… don't know…"

"I don't want to lose you both!" he cried, tears streaming from his face as if they were trying to run to a safer place. "It's not fair!"

Tohru couldn't take it any longer. She threw an arm around Momiji's neck, pulling him into a hug. A cloud of smoke blinded her as a soft feel touched her arm. It hurt to have another texture against her injuries. Momiji continued to cry into her shoulder. "I don't want…" Tohru began. "… I don't want to forget you… any of you."

After hearing the poof, Kyo rushed out to where the two were hugging. "Momiji! You know Tohru's-!"

"no!" Tohru interrupted. "it's my fault. I hugged him first." She still held the rabbit tight in her arms. Droplets had already dampened her face, the light that bounced off of her had silhouetted her nicely.

"Tohru, you know it's just going to slow down your recovery and the longer it takes, the more danger you're putting yourself in!"

"I don't care! I... I _want_ to hug Momiji. If I could, I'd hug you all at once but I know I can't!" she then held the furry animal at arm's length. "you should get some rest, Momiji. It's almost morning."

Against his own will, he allowed Tohru to set him down. Reluctantly, Momiji carried his clothes in his mouth and ran out, knowing that if he stayed any longer, he probably would refuse to leave. "... will Yuki be okay?" Tohru asked.

The cat shrugged his shoulders, keeping his gaze on the floor. "too soon to say. He's fine for now but... his condition might change – you know, coz of that problem with his lungs or whatever..." running a hand through his hair and slipping the other into his pocket, Kyo continued. "Shigure and Ayame should be here soon anyway. Hatsuharu called them earlier." He turned on his heel to go back into the room.

"Kyo?"

He stopped and stared straight ahead. "yeah...?" he replied with a hint of hope in his voice.

"c... uh... c-could you stay here... with me?" she requested. "y-you don't have to if you don't want to! I mean, you probably have more important things to do and all so you shouldn't waste you time-!"

"sure," he smiled. He'd actually intended to say 'I'd love to' but didn't want to give her any ideas or anything. Even if she _was_ incredibly naïve, he wasn't going to give her even the slightest clue about how he felt. Kyo grabbed a chair and seated himself beside her.

There came a huge bang as the door flung open and hit the wall – most likely leaving a big dent in it. "Tohru!" two voices said in unison. Shigure and Ayame ran in crying rivers as they danced their way over to the couch.

"are you okay?! You're _definitely sure_ you're not going to die?!" Ayame shrieked with concern.

"no, of course not! Kyo's been very helpful to us all and-!"

"Kyo?!" Shigure turned to him in shock. He slapped a hand onto Kyo's forehead. "are you feeling okay?!" a few crashes and bangs made the room seem to shake while Ayame smiled calmly and removed his coat, gloves and scarf. The cat returned to his seat casually, leaving behind a mangled Shigure on the floor. "... he's fine..." the dog squeaked, twitching.

"um... as I was saying, Yuki and Kyo both helped me a lot but now Kyo's hurt and Yuki started coughing up blood-"

"YUKI!" Ayame screamed, dashing pointlessly around the room several times with his hands high in the air and shouting 'argh!' before eventually zooming into where Yuki and Hatori were. "I'M COMING, LITTLE BROTHER!"

more bangs and crashes were heard. "Yuki!" Tohru cried. "he shouldn't be so aggressive when he's hurt!"

the noise suddenly came to a stop as Hatori walked out with his usual emotionless face, holding Ayame by the ear. The snake cried more rivers down his face and a few whimpers were just barely audible. "next time I'll make sure the damage is permanent!" he let go, allowing Ayame to fall like a puddle to the floor, slamming the door behind him.

Ayame suddenly stood up looking proud of himself – a red ear sticking out like a sore thumb. "no need to panic, everyone! Thanks to me, my baby brother, Yuki, is rushing down the road to recovery!"

Kyo sighed. "I'm surrounded by idiots..." he mumbled.

Shigure silently popped up from behind him. "that's not very nice!" he yelled down Kyo's ear.

"gah!" the cat fell out of his chair and hit the floor with a 'thud!'. "hey! Can't you just leave me and Tohru alone?!"

Shigure gasped. "YOU FIEND!!" he shoved Kyo's head to the floor. "DO NOT FEAR, TOHRU! FOR I, SHIGURE SOHMA, YOUR HERO, SHALL PROTECT YOU FROM THIS _MONSTER_!"

"that's it, you're dead, you sick bastard!" Kyo started punching and kicking the dog continuously. They were both now stuck in a grey cloud that was rolling all around the room with stars, fists and a random tooth flying from it.

"ah! P-please! Don't fight!" Tohru pleaded.

Shigure's head kept spontaneously popping itself out of the cloud. "help! Help! Is there a hero for the hero?"

"do not fret, Gure! I shall rescue you – ARGH!" he was pulled into the fight.

"please, stop!" Tohru was really beginning to worry now. Plus, she was sure Hatori didn't need any more patients to deal with.

The doctor opened the door to the room he'd been in and noticed that cloud was rolling towards him. He stuck a leg out and the three boys were sent flying nine or ten yards away and landed piled on top of each other. "if and only if you're quiet, you can go in to see Yuki."

"I'm here, baby brother!" as you may have guessed, Ayame was the first one in. Shigure quickly followed and Kyo sauntered behind.

"Tohru," Hatori began. "you can go in to see him as soon as I'm done cleaning your wounds."


	11. SMALL spoiler!

Please don't hate me! Slight spoiler in this chapter! But DON'T WORRY! If you don't like spoilers then just read on as normal until you get to the part where Shigure walks out of the room, I'll give you all a little heads-up!

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Hatori finished cleaning Tohru's wounds an carefully carried her to Yuki. He shooed Shigure from a nearby armchair and set her down. Ayame sat on the floor weeping beside the bed. Yuki was only half-conscious. "YUKI! PLEASE STAY WITH US! STAY AWAY FROM THE LIGHT! YOU HEAR ME? AWAY!"

"Ayame, either keep you voice down or shut up!" the doctor warned his friend, a sudden urge to kill rising.

"NEVER! I'll SHOUT IT TO THE HEAVENS FOR MY SIBLING'S HEALTH TO BE RESTOR-!"

Kyo stuck a fist in the snake's mouth. "you dare say another word, and I'll knock you into the year of the _rooster_!" he threatened. Aya nodded his head in fear.

Shigure placed himself on the floor beside Tohru, his face wasn't glowing with that cheerful smile anymore. "how long?" he asked solemnly.

"eh...?"

"about a week. After that we'll need to find you a new home, Tohru," Hatori said. "and I'm counting on you, Ayame and Shigure, to keep Akito as far away from her as you possibly can." He thought it was strange how he felt so surprised that he didn't have much faith in his words.

"I – I can just stay with my grandpa," Tohru offered.

"but..." Kyo started. "... what if he asks why you're not staying with us anymore?"

She hadn't thought of that. No one had. For a moment, they were all silent, pondering solutions to their problem. Yuki just lay there, seemingly sleeping. "I... guess I can tell him that you were moving... or something like that..." Tohru could feel her tears bubbling up. "but... I don't want to lose my memory. You're all the best friends anyone could ask for!"

"oh, Tohru, please don't cry!" Shigure begged, wiping away a tear with his thumb. "no matter what happens, we'll still be your friends. Even if you don't remember us, we'll never forget you!"

She sniffed and curved her lips at them all. There was an ambulance siren going off just outside of Sohma house as several paramedics flooded their way out. Yuki was weakly shaking his head but no one had noticed – he wasn't told that he's going to be hospitalized. Hatori most likely didn't tell him because he knew the rat would refuse to go.

"Tohru, you'll have to wait in another room whilst we get Yuki into the ambulance." Hatori went to pick her up again. "one of you will have to go to the hospital with him. Shigure?"

Shigure shook his head. "I have urgent business to attend to! How about you, Kyo?"

"_I_," Ayame began. "_shall gladly accompany_-!"

"do I have to?" the cat asked, completely ignoring Ayame.

"_I can go_!"

"yes, you have to. Make sure no female doctors examine him or be careful that he doesn't transform," Hatori ordered, awkwardly holding Tohru in his arms. "we don't have time to argue, Kyo, just go down and show the paramedics where to go. Then you can follow them in-"

"I know what to do!" he shouted, annoyed that he was being treated like a five-year-old.

"_please! Let me go with_-"

"shut up, Ayame!" they all said – well, except Tohru, who was feeling sorry for him.

Both Yuki and Kyo were gone, leaving Tohru with the Notorious Trio. Hatori made her go to sleep, repeating that it was late and she needed to get some rest. He, Ayame and Shigure laid out a flew blankets on the floor of the main room while the girl slept on the dragon's bed. However, Shigure left the room and when he was asked where he was going, he just replied with a simple 'I'll be back'.

SPOILER-HATERS, STOP READING NOW!

The dog carried on sauntering until he reached Akito's room then knocked on the door casually.

"who is it and what do you want?" Akito's harsh voice shot out at him.

"it's me, Shigure." He slowly creaked the door open and peered through to see him lying on the balcony as usual. "I've come to visit you, Akito." He kneeled down onto the floor.

"don't lie to me, Shigure." He sat up and swung his legs around to see him properly. "what did you _really_ come for?" he stood and walked slowly around him.

"what makes you think I would lie to my beloved God?" he laughed slightly. "don't you trust me?"

"answer my question!" Akito yelled.

The dog calmly smiled at him. "I did come to visit you. But I also want you to tell me why you attacked Yuki, Kyo and Tohru?"

"are you accusing me of assault?"

Shigure stood up, sliding a hand down Akito's cheek. "only if you _did_ assault them..." he leaned closer to his ear. "don't lie to me..." he whispered.

Akito's eyes flared with anger as he struck Shigure's face. "so what if I did?! I'm God! I can do as I please! You have no right to stop me!" he screamed.

"I didn't say I did." He didn't face him. The dog turned away towards the door before he was dragged by the back of his kimono and pulled to the ground.

"I didn't say you could leave!"

Shigure remained laying on the floor. He rubbed his now sore neck and silently grunted with the pain of almost being suffocated. "no," he choked. "you didn't. I'm sorry."

Akito bent down, hovering above him. "next time, don't just leave me. Now get up!"

He obeyed and continued to massage his neck. Standing face-to-face, the dog awaited his next orders. "why do you like that girl? Do you love her? Does she return your love?"

"do I love who? Tohru? No, of course not. I highly doubt she has that sort of interest in me either," he laughed. "I only have one love. I'm sure you know who that is, am I right?"

"you leave me to ponder over your silly riddles? Are you too afraid to say it out loud anymore? WELL?!"

He shook his head. "what's the point in love if it's not going to be shared? I love you, Akito. I always have and I always will." He went to lift Akito's chin to face him but 'God' swatted his hand away and stared in disgust. (A/N: I say 'God' because.. well, let's just say I'm not exactly an Atheist... and I don't have anything against them!)

"I bet you don't know the meaning of the word. If you truly love me, you would always do as I say. But do you?"

"my dear Akito," Shigure started. "love isn't about following orders all the time. In fact, love is all free-will-"

"SHUT UP!" Akito yelled. Then he quickly pressed his lips against Shigure's and tightly wrapped his arms around his neck.

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well, that's it for now, please review!


	12. Mabudachi duo

(In the hospital)

"You should be going home in two to three days. Remember, straining yourself wont help your condition," the doctor told Yuki for the fourth time that day. (A/N: it's the next day) Yuki nodded – he didn't like the doctor and didn't want to say anything that may trigger him into a conversation.

Kyo sat pouting in the corner on one of the chairs. He couldn't sleep well seeing as it was made of wood and the cushion was stuffed so much that there wasn't enough air to compress it. A lot of the staff asked him if he wanted them to examine his wounds but Kyo got so mad at their constant nagging that he punched a wall which scared off the flock. The doctor left, leaving the two Sohmas in an awkward silence... again. "What happened to Miss Honda?" Yuki asked. He couldn't really see her at all – not since the encounter with Akito. "Is she still hurt?"

"How should I know? I've been stuck her in this dump with you."

"Listen, you stupid cat, I didn't want to be her in the first place and I certainly didn't ask for you to accompany me, did I?"

Kyo shot up from his chair in anger. "Hey, I _had_ to come! Shigure had something to do, we couldn't let your idiot brother come along and Hatori had to stay to look after Tohru!"

"That's exactly what I'm asking, numbskull! How is Toh...?! I mean... how Miss Honda is?" he hesitated.

The cat folded his arms and shrugged. "She was fine last time I saw her. Actually... there was something wrong; I think she sprained her shoulder and Hatori was carrying her around so I'm guessing she couldn't walk either."

Yuki felt incredibly uncomfortable in the hospital bed with the thin sheets. He'd been stripped of his shredded clothes and slipped into the patient's gown. It was strange to Kyo; Yuki was always stronger than him but looked a lot frailer. It's like, the weaker he looks, the stronger he actually is. Plus he had nearly everything a normal guy could wish for; good-looks; any girl he wanted; popularity; high grades.

Yuki had had a guilt cloud over his head since he'd found out why Akito kidnapped Tohru. Just because he and Kyo had refused to return to Sohma house, the head of the family had decided to take out all of his anger on someone as innocent as Tohru. It wasn't fair.

"You're gonna have to tell her sooner or later," Kyo mumbled, staring out of the window. "She's not going to remember anyway so you might as well."

"Tell her what?" Yuki asked.

"You know, that you like her; it's a little obvious. And I'd bet the only reason Tohru hasn't figured it out yet is coz she's so damn simple and stuff."

"And what about you?" the rat said. "You like her too. That's why you're not as heartless to her as you are to others."

"Shut up! What do you know, anyway? She's in to you more than she is to me..." his voice trailed off as he began to lose himself in his thoughts.

"What makes you think she likes me more than you?" Yuki actually liked the fact that Kyo had admitted that and deeply hoped it was true but then again, he also admired the cat's honesty and would feel guilty if he were to do nothing but bring him down. "She treats us both exactly the same. And the cat's always been her favourite, right?"

"Yeah, but you're smarter and, let's face it, all the girls worship you, why would this one be the only one to have no attraction to the Prince?"

"... Because she likes another, perhaps?" he suggested, hinting that he meant Kyo.

The two boys suddenly stopped in silence, realising that they'd just been nice – well, remotely – to one another. They turned away from each other quickly and fell back into their pool of hatred.

-star- -star- -star-

Tohru was made to stay sleeping in Hatori's bed. Shigure refused to leave Sohma house without the other three and Ayame... well... he had nothing better to do. It was already late afternoon and the Notorious Trio all gathered to keep Tohru Company. Actually, Hatori was giving her a check-up, the other two just tagged along. "We should be able to get rid of most of your bandages soon, Tohru," Hatori said.

"Oh, that's good!" she beamed at him. "Can we go see Yuki-?"

"I second the notion!" Ayame jumped up in excitement.

They all ignored the snake, who pouted. "I'll need to find out if they're allowing him to have visitors... then I'll have to decide whether or not I'll have the two idiots to accompany you."

"Don't worry, Ha'ri!" Shigure said with pride. "Ayame and I will go with her instead of them!" they both gave him big cheesy grins, obviously not understanding the concept of the doctor's sentence.

"Thank you, Hatori," Tohru smiled.

There came a knock at the door. The dragon sighed and asked one of the other two to get it. Ayame hopped over - Aya hopped! - To the door to find Hatsuharu waiting on the other side. "Is Tohru here?"

"_Tohru_!" he sang/called. "_You have a guest_!"

Haru walked straight in and grabbed a chair beside Tohru. "Uh, hello, Hatsuharu!" Tohru beamed.

"Hi, Tohru," he said without a smile – as usual. "The damage isn't too bad, is it?"

"Oh, no! It's mostly just cuts, bruises-"

"Sprains, minor blood loss, slight concussion..." Hatori carried on, knowing she probably wouldn't mention those things so as not to worry him.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get there earlier, Tohru," Haru said.

"No, there's really no need to apologise at all! It wasn't your fault!"

"But if I did get there, you'd probably be less injured... I only came to check up on you so if you'll excuse me, I promised Kisa I'd take her and Hiro out to the movies. Goodbye." (A/N: I know, a bit of a pointless visit)

As soon as Hatsuharu left, the girl remembered. "Ah! Shigure! I need to get home to cook you something to eat!" she threw the cover aside and swung her legs over. "I'm so sorry! I completely forgot – AH!" as her legs touched the ground, a shooting pain panged up through her, causing her to stumble.

"Tohru!" Shigure said, reaching his arms out to catch her.

POOF!

Tohru ended up hanging over the canine's back, her arms dangling down helplessly as she awaited the aid of the doctor. "I'm sorry, Shigure..." she squeaked as she was lifted back onto the bed.

"No, not at all, Tohru. It was very sweet of you to think of me, though!" he wagged his tail rapidly. "Excuse me..." he gathered his clothes in his mouth and made his way out, shutting the door. There came another loud 'poof' but this was one of the rare occasions when Tohru had no reason to shriek and turn.

He re-entered the room.

"Gure, should we go and grab our grub?" Ayame smiled. "Hey! I made alliteration! Ha!"

"Ah, it seems I have a creative writing rival!" Shigure laughed.

"Hot and tender, sweet or sour, what would you like Tohru, our little desert flower?" Ayame bowed as if to royalty with one hand behind his back.

Tohru gigged. "I'll have anything not too expensive, please!"

Shigure copied his friend. "Anything for you, the beautiful Tohru!"

"Oh! No! I'm... I'm not _beautiful_, really!"

The doctor sighed. "Stop embarrassing her and go get the food already!"

Ayame decided to give him a taste of his own medicine by ignoring him. "Such modesty, so rare these days..."

"... but you're beautiful no matter what you say!"

Tohru blushed and gave them a modest smile. Hatori's anger pulse was now clearly visible and, if the poets would shut up, slightly audible. "Just go, would you?!"

They gasped loudly, huffed and turned. "Fine! We know where we're our poetry is not wanted!" Ayame said.

"Come, Aya!" said Shigure. "From now on we shall be known to the world as the Mabudachi _duo_!" they slammed the door behind them.

"Idiots..." Hatori mumbled.

"a-aren't you upset, Hatori?" Tohru asked, slightly confused.

He shook his head. "No. They'll come crying to me at the end of today saying it's not the same without me..."

"How do you know?"

"This is the seventh time they've said that to me this month."


	13. back together

Really sorry about the unusually late update, but I got a damn music project, got distracted reading manga and having troubles with Bluetooth… .;; shoot me if you want…

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Yuki had fallen asleep with a full tray of untouched food on the table beside him. Kyo slept on the uncomfortable chair, his head buried in the collar of his jacket. A few female nurses had tried to examine the two boys but Kyo made sure they wouldn't come back... well, they didn't actually want to examine them medically so the best defence the cat could think of was either to say that they both had girlfriends that they were committed to... or to say that they were gay. Both excuses worked. But just in case, they'd locked the door.

Kyo jerked upwards as his ears detected movement on the other side of the door. The sound of the door knob rattling forced him to his feet. He waited to see who it was, at the same time hoping it wasn't another female nurse.

"Yuki? Kyo?" he heard Hatori's voice on the other side when he'd given up on trying to open the door himself. "Open the door!"

The cat quickly unlocked it and allowed him in. To his surprise, Tohru was pushed in on a wheelchair.

"What the fuck happened?!"

"Kyo, mind your language... This is a hospital after all," the doctor warned. "It's just temporary. Tohru's going to have to stay in a wheelchair until she's strong enough to walk again," he explained.

Kyo looked around, then at the door. "Where are the other two?"

"Flirting with most of the staff." Hatori placed Tohru's chair by the wall and helped her to a chair beside the bed. He turned to Kyo. "How's Yuki?"

Kyo turned his gaze to the sleeping rat. "He not eating and rarely wakes up. That's all really…"

"Has he transformed at all?"

He shook his head. "I'll go find Shigure and Ayame before they transform…" he left the room.

Tohru looked to the bed. Yuki's sleep didn't look peaceful at all; like he was feeling real pain in a dream. His head abruptly jerked from one side to the other like he was being hit. His face was moist and he seemed to be grunting in silence. Tohru began to worry. "I-is he okay?"

Hatori glanced at him without much interest. "He's probably just having a nightmare again. It's alright, he should wake up when it gets too much for him." he watched as Tohru's concern remained. Kana was like that… it frustrated him how Tohru couldn't be older. Then he may not hesitate in pressing his feelings but… she's only seventeen. (A/N: well, she is in this story) But he didn't want to go through the same thing he did with Kana. Her memory was going to be erased so he couldn't afford to get too comfortable.

She noticed that the doctor was staring at her on the other side of Yuki's bed. "Is something wrong?" Tohru asked.

He paused, realising he had been staring at her for a long while. The doctor tried the find something that could divert the situation. "The bandage on your arm; it's coming loose." Thankfully he had spotted it just in time. It was only because the shirt she was wearing was quite low cut. "Here, I'll fix it." He stepped around the bed and kneeled on the floor in front of her. "Do you mind if I do it here?"

Tohru made sure Yuki was definitely still asleep before allowing him to proceed. He slid the fabric on one of her shoulders downwards to expose a bare arm. Hatori searched for the end of the bandage and unwrapped it; being careful not to show too much of Tohru so she wouldn't be too nervous. He pulled it tighter and rewrapped the material around her. "Is that too tight for you, Tohru?"

She bit her lip, feeling uncomfortable. "N-no, it's fine."

Hatori tucked the end in and tugged it securely then sliding her top back up her arm.

The door slammed open. "HATORI IS SEXUALLY HARRASSING TOHRU!" Ayame shrieked.

"Ah! No! He was just fixing my bandage!" Tohru said, her voice quivering.

"A likely story!" Shigure said, as if he was a detective. He leaned his head towards Aya. "I bet he forced her to say that, the _sicko_! Luckily the Mabudachi Duo got here just in time! Isn't that right, Aya?" he turned to his friend.

Ayame was sucking on his bottom lip as if he was holding back tears. "A-Ayame?" Tohru said in concern.

"Oh, I can't take it!" he burst, running to Hatori's feet, sobbing. "It's not the same! We need the Mabudachi Trio back together!"

"_Aya_!" Shigure whined.

"Don't deny, Gure!"

Hatori sighed. "If I do, will you please shut up?"

"Yes!" Shigure and Ayame put their fingers together to make that sign that I'm guessing means friends or something like that. They hopped around in obvious joy quite loudly.

"Nnh…" Yuki's lifeless voice moaned. "… Tohru? When did –? Why the _hell_ are those two jumping around like that?"

"YUKI!" Ayame ran through his friend, stampeding all over him and suffocating his brother in a tight hug. "YOU'RE OKAY, I WAS SO WORRIED! WHAT HAPPENED? DID YOU HIT ON ANY GIRLS?!" he wept while sounding incredibly happy anyway.

"…erm…" Yuki choked. "… h-how did you get onto that subject?"

The snake sniffed and continued shouting. "I'M WORRIED ABOUT YOU COZ YOU'RE LONELY AND STILL A VIRGIN!"

Three seconds later, Ayame was unconscious on the floor. The dragon had insisted to Tohru that he'd recover quicker if he was left alone and she believed him – which he knew was nothing but a big lie.

Kyo stood by the door, hoping to remain ignored by everyone. He watched as Shigure's once again mangled body struggled to get back to his feet and wondered why he never changed into his dog form? He can't possibly bare that pain. (A/N: just thought I'd randomly say that – it has nothing to do with the story, just to make that clear!!)

"Kyo?" Tohru said.

_Damn she noticed!_ He thought.

"Why don't you come in, Kyo?" she asked, smiling.

"Why should I?" he replied coldly though it was unintentional.

"Oh… um…" she hesitated. "… I – I wasn't forcing you to come in, if that's the impression you got! I – I just thought… well… because this is my last week with you all… maybe we could all be together… uh! But if you don't want to, that's okay! It doesn't really matter all that-!"

"Shut up!" Kyo bit his lip, realising how loud his voice was. "… I mean… I'm coming…" he said, stepping into the room but staying close to the door and avoiding eye contact with anyone.

Shigure sighed longingly and smiled thoughtfully at them. "I can see the sparks of love jumping from you, Kyo!"

"Don't push it!" he gritted through his teeth, sending the dog a deadly glare.

Tohru sucked in her tears. "I'm sorry, everyone. I'm being so selfish, going on about what I want and all…"

"Oh, Tohru, no!" Shigure reassured her. "You're not being selfish at all!"

"Yes…" Yuki agreed, smiling. "… Anything you want, we'll do our best to provide it to you, Miss Honda."

She smiled at them. "You're all wonderful! I wish I could think of a way to repay you all!"

Shigure reached for Tohru's hand, even though all he wanted to do was hug her. "There's really no need for that, Tohru. You've been more than enough help to us already!" soon he stood and walked to the door. Everyone watched him and awaited an explanation. "Um… I'll see you all later – I have urgent business to attend to!"

Hatori sighed but didn't say a word. Instead he just shot the dog a certain you-shouldn't-be-doing-this look.

"Um… bye!" he ran out before anyone else gave him any other glares.

-star- -star- -star-

"Akito, are you there?" Shigure asked, moving his head closer to the door.

There came no answer. He knocked again and got no better result, then decided to just go in. "Akito?" he called, looking around the room and seeing nothing at first. Eventually, he became aware of a mountain of sheets bundled up in the corner of the room and was able to make out a small face in it all. "Akito? What are you doing?" he asked as he approached him.

"Go away," he whispered but in a firm way. "All the other zodiac members have left me for their own selfish desire – you are no better!"

"What do you mean?"

Akito did not answer but scowled and continued. "What do you want anyway?"

"_I_ want nothing. But _we_, the boys and I, request one thing…" Shigure knelt down and waited for Akito to respond.

"I told you, didn't I? You're all just being selfish!" he turned his head away from the dog. "I know what you're going to ask. You want me to reconsider erasing that wench's memory, am I right?"

Shigure sighed. "It's true. We all ask of it." He brought a hand to move away a sheet. "I beg of you, Akito. She's an innocent child who holds no threat to us. I don't request many things from you. I love y-!"

"QUIET!" he screamed, pushing up from the mountain of comfort and walking away over to the balcony. "You don't mean that. You only say it because you think you can get what you want that way…"

"no, Akito."

Akito felt a hand rest on his shoulder in a comforting way and a strong chest supporting his back.

"when I say that I love you, it means that I really do love you. I just ask this one little thing."

"why?" he said, still in the same position but shrugging Shigure's hand off. "do you want everyone to know about the curse? Don't you care for the welfare of the family?"

he took a deep breath. "of course I do… and it's because I care that I want Tohru to keep her memories. As much as you deny it, you know she is holding us together…"

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once again, uber sorry for the lateness... Yayness! I started a new FanFic!!

please review!!


	14. I'm not sorry

Sorry, uber late update…

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(A few days later – the Big Day)

Tohru was back at the house again. She could finally support herself, only staggering a little. Yuki was given permission to go back home – which he quickly did – but was made to rest for the next couple of weeks; meaning no fights with Kyo. And finally, the Mabudachi Trio are reunited – much to Hatori's dismay…

Tohru smiled cheerfully as usual as she stood over the stove, cooking again. Her bruises had almost completely vanished. She stood in the kitchen making rice balls joyfully. She had made cakes earlier; all this food was her treat for the Sohma family as a gift.

Shigure was in the living room, speaking with Yuki while Kyo was in his room. No one had heard from him since the morning. The night before, Hatori had come round to check up on Tohru. She was absolutely fine and everybody hated that fact; not in a mean way though. They didn't want him to get better purely because they didn't want her to have her memory erased.

"Go on then, Yuki!" Shigure urged him into the kitchen.

"No, you stupid dog! I told you, I don't love her!" Yuki replied, whispering the ending. "Besides, if I did, what would she think of me?"

"My dear Yuki, you cannot deny true love!"

"Keep your voice down!" Yuki urged, turning red in the face.

Tohru's head peered through the screen door. "Is everything okay?"

The rat's face flushed harder. He tried to avoid her gaze and stay quiet but, unfortunately for him, Shigure was around. "Yuki has something to tell you, Tohru!" he said happily, receiving a death glare from Yuki.

"Yes, Yuki?"

"U-um… I, er…" he stuttered – which rarely happened. Unintentionally, Yuki turned towards her. "… It's just that… well, um… I – I just want you to know that…" he sighed. "I'm gonna miss you."

"That's not it!!" Shigure yelled. "He wanted to say that he lo-!" Yuki shot his fist into the dog's mouth, muffling the last of the sentence so it could not be made out. Tohru grinned widely anyway and went back into the kitchen. Yuki let out a breath of relief.

"Why don't you just go away and pick on Kyo?" the rat suggested.

Shigure massaged his jaw bone to regain his usual speech. "I tried. He locked the door to his room."

_Now, why didn't I think of that? _Yuki thought to himself. He ran a hand through his hair, sighing. What could Kyo be doing anyway? He smiled at his next thought; _crying, perhaps?_ But it wasn't normal for Kyo to shut himself away in his room – the roof maybe, but not anywhere inside the house.

"Shigure?" came a voice from the door. Yuki and Shigure both turned to see Hatori at the screen door with a depressed-looking Momiji by his side. "Where is Tohru?" the doctor asked, stepping in. Momiji stood in place, expressionless and staring blankly into the room.

Tohru came into the room holding a large and probably heavy bowl of rice balls. Her mouth formed an 'o' shape as she saw Hatori at the table but it soon curved into her usual smile again. "You're early Hatori! I'm so glad! I've been meaning to speak to you!" as she lay the bowl down onto the table, she caught sight of Momiji, who was still at the door. "Momiji? Come in, it's the middle of winter so you might catch a cold!"

The rabbit remained silent, looking like he was lost in deep thought.

"He's been like that for the past few days now," Hatori said. "That's why I don't want him to stay long. I'm taking him home soon. He only came to say his goodbyes anyway." Momiji's eyes seemed to darken as Hatori's words came out.

"Aw, Momiji!" Shigure cried. "You're making me feel so unloved! I demand a hug to make up for it!" he ran over and grabbed Momiji in a bear-hug, practically carrying him into the room. Momiji just looked like he was getting annoyed. It was hard to tell though since no-one has really seen him pissed off. The dog gave up after he got no chirpy reaction and set him down. "What's wrong with Momiji, Ha'ri?"

"I already said; he's been like that for the past few days."

"Ah!" Tohru screamed. "Is he sick?!"

"Of course not," the doctor replied. "It's nothing physical. More emotional. I just hope it doesn't develop into anything serious…" he looked sympathetic towards the young boy.

"By that," Yuki finally said after watching him the whole time. "What do you mean?"

Hatori stopped, running a hand through his hair. "I'm just hoping it doesn't develop into anything like depression."

Tohru's eyes widened at the rabbit. "He's already showing early signs of it," Hatori continued. "I've been trying to put him on anti-depressant pills but he's not responding – it just seems to make him worse." How can someone like Momiji get depression in less than a week? And why? Just because Tohru was going to lose her memory?

Tohru felt butterflies swirl in her stomach as thought of how it was all her fault circled her mind. Momiji's eyes glazed, only blinking occasionally as he stared into open space. Yuki sat next to him with the same thoughtful expression he'd been holding while watching the young boy. Tears stung her eyes but she didn't want anyone to see them.

"_Tohru!!_" hollered a voice from the door. He came swooping in arrogantly but then held a sulk and faking tears. "Why can't we hug? I want a hug!" he whined.

"Could I have Tohru's hug for her?" Shigure requested. Aya squealed as they ran to each other and locked in an embrace.

Tohru smiled joyfully. Hatori was getting really irritated by now. Yuki – taking advantage of the fact that nobody was looking – extended an arm to Momiji, who didn't react. The rat pulled him into his arms warmly and held him tight. Momiji, after trying so hard to ignore it, wilfully returned the hug. He looked as though he really needed it, judging by how tightly he held Yuki. His eyes shut, trying to keep from crying. Tohru eventually saw this and was quite surprised but at the same time she grinned thoughtfully at them. They were still unaware that she was watching.

"Momiji," Hatori said, turning to him once more.

Momiji quickly snatched away from Yuki and looked up at the doctor with the same dark emotions as before. "Do you have anything you would like to say to Tohru before we go back?" he asked.

The rabbit just death glared at him without a word. Everyone waited for a reply but there was none. Tohru was especially disappointed, thinking she wouldn't hear Momiji's joyful voice anymore.

Hatori sighed. "Well, if that's how you want it, just say goodbye." He stood up and waited for Momiji to say something. Nothing. Not even a wave. Momiji wouldn't even stand to leave. Hatori reached out his hand, indicating that he wanted to help him up but he just smacked it away, making many in the room gasp.

Tohru shuffled over to his side and held her arms wide open. "Momiji…?" she said, her voice wavering. "can't I at least have one last goodbye hug?"

"_no_!" Momiji screamed. "if I hugged you, or if I said goodbye, then you'd have to go! I don't want you to go!" he cried, tears already creating stripes down his cheeks.

She contracted her arms back and stared with a look of horror. He was now hiccupping as he tried to hide the rivers of tears. He threw his arms around Yuki again and sobbed into his shoulder. Yuki looked up at Tohru through Momiji and had a what-now? Look in his eyes. "I hate you, Tohru!" Momiji yelled, his voice muffled through Yuki's shirt. "you're leaving me, just like everybody else! _I hate you_!"

Her eyes suddenly welled up. Tohru buried her head in her hands and wept. "I'm sorry…" she sniffed. "I never meant to hurt you… any of you!"

Momiji abruptly paralysed at her words. He slowly released Yuki and looked at her, partly regretting his words. He swallowed and moved closer to sit in front of her. Tohru continued to cry into her palms, not noticing Momiji's hand placing itself on her shoulder for comfort.

Shigure sniffed. "Aya… promise you won't leave me…" he said as they were still locked in a hug.

Ayame smiled and hugged him tighter. "you'll always be my one and only, Gure! I shall never abandon you!"

Yuki sighed. He decided that Kyo was probably just sulking in his room so got up and walked to the door. "Yuki! Wait for me, I want to come to!" Ayame cried, leaving Shigure alone and running after his brother.

"_Aya_!" Shigure whined.

Hatori indicated for the dog to be quiet before looking back at Tohru and Momiji. Tohru wiped away the last of her tears and forced a smile at Momiji. "you'll still always be my friend, Momiji!"

Momiji's lips remained straight. "well, I'm not sorry for what I said."

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how's that? Too sad, too rushed, too moment-ruining with the Shigure and Ayame part? Whatever, please review!


	15. I won't forget

MY INSPIRATION HAS RETURNED!!

I apologise for the inconvenience… and this is a short chapter…

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Hatori finally managed to get Momiji home after a whole lot of struggling. Tohru had suggested that they let him stay but the doctor explained that that wouldn't be good for Momiji to witness one of his best friends lose their memory. "Momiji," he began as they sat in silence in the car. "I know you're upset about Tohru – we all are – but you have to learn to let go."

"I'm not speaking to you!" he said firmly, folding his arms tightly.

He returned less than an hour later to find that everyone had gathered in the main room, enjoying Tohru's cooking.

Haru had decided that Hiro and Kisa could see her one last time. They came for about five minutes and left while Hatori was still gone. Shigure and Ayame refused to allow Tohru to do any work around the house. "You must spend your last few days with us treated like royalty!" Ayame sang.

Shigure shifted closer to Yuki and grinned. "Yuki can be your king, and you'll give birth to many beautiful princes and princesses!"

Yuki glowed bright red and went to hit Shigure before Aya interrupted. "Ah! What a brilliant idea! Come Yuki!" he grabbed Yuki by the wrist and dragged him out of the room. "We must find the perfect outfits for you! There's a couple I've been working on just for such an occasion!"

In an instant, there were gone. Hatori sighed and glanced down at his watch. It was almost 4.00pm and Akito wanted this to be done as soon as possible. He said he'd come by to make sure it was done if Hatori didn't return soon. "They'd better return soon," he said. "Or I'll have to start without them."

Tohru looked around and wondered where Kyo was? He hadn't been down for a long time and she was beginning to worry – luckily she had a pretty good idea of where he may be. "Uh, I left something upstairs – I'll be back down soon," she smiled, trying to cover up her lie. Tohru climbed the ladder to the roof and, she was right, she found Kyo there, lying on his back. "Kyo? Are you alright?" she asked.

The cat didn't reply, he just looked away from her.

"Kyo?" she said with concern.

"what?" he finally said, harshly.

Tohru began to worry in case she was annoying him. she climbed off of the ladder and crawled to sit beside him. "uh… I haven't seen you much today so I was starting to worry."

Kyo was silent once more. He still wouldn't face her and still had the expressionless look on his face.

Tohru took a deep breath. "I – I'll miss you, Kyo."

"no, you won't. You can't miss me if you can't remember me."

"I may not be able to remember you, Kyo – but I'll never forget you."

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I know it's short but it's to let you all know that I'm back!!


	16. Princess

Kyo gave her an awkward look. "What in hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Um… i-it means that you'll all be in my mind even though I can't remember. Like when we dream – you know you've had it but don't remember what it was about."

"That's got to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard!" he yelled.

Tohru's head shrank into her shoulders. Kyo sighed. "… I'm sorry…" he grunted reluctantly.

Tohru gently raised a smile, glad that he was starting to be a little bit more considerate. "Tohru…?" he asked, looking away again.

"Yes, Kyo?" she answered, happily.

He leant his head in closer to hers, trying to connect their lips. Tohru couldn't move; she was still paralysed with confusion and shock-

"TOHRU!!" Yelled Ayame.

She jumped, accidentally hitting Kyo without realising it. "Uh, coming!" she called back, leaving the cat with a slightly sore nose. He grunted, his cat ears popping out from the top of his head and he sat up and crossed his arms and legs angrily.

Tohru arrived downstairs. "A-Ayame!" she said. "I didn't expect you back so soon!"

"I knew this day would come so I always leave the outfits in the car!" he beamed, holding the neatly folded costumes in his arms. He dropped all on the floor – ruining then tidiness of it - and then dropped himself beside them, rummaging through them all. He grabbed a handful and threw them at Yuki, ordering him to go upstairs and change. Yuki grunted but finally did go, marching in a very annoyed manner. Whereas, he folded Tohru's clothes back to as neat as they were before and handed them over with a gentle smile, politely requesting for her to change. Tohru smiled back and walked upstairs.

Kyo arrived downstairs with his hands in his pockets, wondering why Yuki stomped passed while Tohru skipped behind him up the stairs. He slumped against a wall in the main room, ignoring the glares he received. "Kyo," Shigure said, expectantly. "What were you doing with Tohru when you were both alone upstairs?"

"Before you start accusing me of anything you would do, I was on the roof!" Kyo said, satisfied that he had won the argument.

"Fine," the dog replied. "What were you doing with Tohru when you were both alone _on the roof_?"

Kyo began chasing Shigure around the room, dropping various breakable objects along the way. Ayame watched them both run in circles and hummed to himself with his right hand to his chin like he was in the middle of a thought. "You know," he said to Hatori. "I was always brought up thinking the dog was the one that cased the cat, not the other way around."

Hatori shrugged. "You're a snake and Yuki's a rat – why don't you eat him?"

Aya laughed as if the doctor had just said something childish. "My dear Ha'ri, you must be dreaming! Snakes don't eat rats!" he laughed harder and very naively.

"Yes they do – you're Yuki's predator, his natural enemy, his killer."

The snake suddenly stopped laughing and gasped but then crossed his arms firmly. "I shall never kill my baby brother!"

At that moment, Yuki's head popped through the door. Ayame jumped up and ran for his sibling, forcing him into a hug that knocked them both to the ground. "I would never do anything to hurt you, would I, Yuki?! Tell Ha'ri! He thinks I'm a cold blooded murderer and that I'm supposed to kill you!"

"Ayame," Hatori said. "Get off of Yuki, his chest still isn't strong enough."

Aya shrieked and bounced off, flapping his arms about in a panic. "I'm sorry, Yuki! I didn't mean to kill you!!" he sobbed, snatching his brother's hand dramatically. "It's true – I'm a monster!"

"Monster?" Tohru's voice came through the room as she stepped through the doorframe.

Everyone in the room froze.

She looked like a bride in her pure white dress. Her shoulders were completely bare; her arms were covered in a laced material with small flowers detailed in with the occasional gold threaded into it and ringing her middle finger. The rest of it seemed to be made of satin with the same laced fabric protecting it all the way down to the rim. She waited for one of them to say something but they all just stared at her until Ayame shrieked and stood up, pulling Yuki along by the wrist. "The beautiful princess and her handsome prince!" he said, pushing Yuki to her side.

Yuki was dressed in a long, velvet, royal blue coat, rimmed with gold, stretching down to the back of his knees. The matching lace frilled from the chest of the coat and at the sleeves with velvet pants to complete the outfit.

Tohru blushed. "Um, it - it's a wonderful dress, Ayame."

"Of course it's wonderful – _I _made it! Plus it's for you so that makes it extra super-duper special!"

"Yes, Ayame," Hatori said. "You just keep using those grown-up phrases."

"I know! Isn't it great?" he beamed.

"No – I was speaking sarcastically."

Aya blinked for a while. "… since when did you speak a different language?"

As the two continued this little conversation, Yuki wouldn't even face Tohru. She looked absolutely stunning but didn't want to let her know that. Shigure looked too mischievous for his own good and the rat didn't like it. He kept shooting the dog death glare warnings but-

"Aw! You're both blushing! That must mean that love is blossoming between you!"

Yuki's hand rose up to meet his cheek in disbelief. Warm. There was no denying that his face had turned bright red without him noticing. He couldn't let Tohru see this! What would she think?

Kyo was still staring at Tohru in disbelief that she could get any prettier. But why does Yuki get to be the prince? Not that he cared, that is – he just thought that… well… he didn't really know. It seemed to him that everyone wanted Yuki and Tohru to be together but they never really thought of him. He could be just as good as Yuki, couldn't he? Okay, so he had a bit of a temper, and he could sometimes be impatient and aggressive but that doesn't mean he could win a girl like Tohru, too… right? It's just not fair.

That's when he heard the chanting: "Kiss! Kiss!" Ayame and Shigure began saying, each of them pushing one of them closer together.

No. They can't. _The rat can't be her first kiss!_ He thought to himself. But he couldn't do anything about it or else Tohru would figure out that he was in love with her.

Yuki gulped and couldn't help but look at Tohru. She was still blushing and sinking her head into her shoulders and waiting for his reaction. The rat sighed, concluding that he had nothing to lose since her memory was going to be erased today and at least he would get her first kiss. In a way it all works out… except for the fact that he wanted her to remember it if she liked the kiss. Oh well – it doesn't matter anymore. Yuki leant his head closer while Tohru stood still, completely silent.

Hatori watched her closely, slightly envious. _She didn't protest. She didn't even squeak like she usually would… does that mean she actually wants Yuki to kiss her? Or would she act like that to any one of us?_ But he felt he couldn't do anything for the same reason as Kyo. _But, then again_, they both thought, _she won't be able to remember any of this so what does it matter?_ Neither of them could move, though. It still didn't feel right to stop them.

As the two drew closer and closer, Kyo wanted to rip his eyes away but they were stuck on this scene; that rat was going to kiss Tohru and he couldn't do anything, just stare. The doctor succeeded in keeping a straight face even though he was jealous of Yuki and annoyed at how Shigure and Ayame watched them like it was a marriage.

"Sweet," growled a voice coming from the door.

Yuki froze at the sound, the redness in his face draining and leaving him pale. He knew it was Akito. He could recognise his soft yet deadly voice anywhere. Tohru's entire body trembled at the sight of Akito smirking at her. "I thought I told you to get this over with quickly? It looks like you've done nothing but play the whole time, Hatori."

"I was going to do it soon, I swear," he tried to assure him.

Akito grimaced. "I don't believe you."

Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to say next. Disagreeing would definitely be the wrong thing to do. An evil smile was playing up on his lips. "do it now. Erase her memory in front of everyone here. You _will _all watch this – I'll think of a suitable punishment for anyone that tries to look away."

Everyone instantly looked at Hatori, was still staring at Akito with wide eyes. Did he know what he was asking…?


	17. Momiji

You know, as I was writing, a great plot came to me and you wouldn't believe how evil I looked – and I _smiled_, too! I have a sick and twisted mind! But please don't hate me…

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Akito grabbed Tohru by the hair, making her scream out in pain. Everyone around felt powerless to stop what was happening. He shoved Yuki at the chest, causing him to fall to the floor where even Ayame couldn't find the courage to help. Akito dragged Tohru to Hatori and threw her to the ground, her hair falling in front of her face. She hiccupped, pushing her tears back. "Do it now!" he ordered.

Hatori hesitated for a moment and looked down at the girl. He had to erase her memory now but how could he? He couldn't deny that he had grown feelings for her just like he had with Kana and now history was about to repeat itself. He knelt down beside her, stroking her hair out of her face. The determination in her eyes was like a barrier to her tears and she looked up at him as bravely as she could. "D-do as he says, Hatori…" Tohru told him, her voice wavering.

Everyone stared, amazed at how willing she was. Kyo's mind was yelling at him, asking why he was just standing there like an idiot instead of trying to stop this from happening. He wondered if Akito had put some sort of spell on them to keep them from moving since all anyone was doing was staring. Yuki asked himself why he was still afraid of Akito – he knew he could fight him any day and the abuse he had put him through as a child happened years ago, so why wasn't he moving? Akito's twisted smile coiled back on his face. He was going to enjoy this.

The doctor looked into her eyes one more time, trying to find even a smudge of regret but there was nothing. It was like her memory had already been erased seeing as though her eyes were already blank. His hand twitched up to her forehead – it felt as though he was pulling his heart along with it. With his hand in position, Hatori paused. This wasn't right; Tohru had done nothing wrong. "… I – I can't do it... I can't bear losing someone else, Tohru…" he whispered before adding. "I love you…" his eyes had welled up by now. Yuki and Kyo watched to see Tohru's reaction.

"Hatori, please…" she begged as if his words had completely dodged her. "_Just get this over with_! _I don't want to be anymore trouble_!" she screamed, her tears finally falling.

No – he couldn't erase her memory… but how could he argue with her now? This was what she wanted and he had to put her out of her misery. He reluctantly nodded and regained his concentration again – it was finally over. Hatori shut his eyes and began. Akito knew he was holding back, probably mentally battling with himself to stop this since it doesn't usually take this long. "Do it _faster_!" he ordered.

The doctor knew he couldn't delay any longer, he had to face the truth and it was that Tohru was bound to forget them – she didn't show any similar emotions when he finally confessed his feelings. The white glow emerged from the palm of his hand, ready to shoot out her memories just like it had with Kana. But now Kana is happy and Tohru will be, too. She would soon forget everything and everyone in the Sohma. "_Tohru_!" a voice screamed, shoving Hatori's hand off target and landing on Tohru, causing her to stumble onto her back, ending in a big _poof!_

The smoke cleared and scattered all around her were clothes she could recognise a mile away. She stared for a moment, still in shock. "M… Momiji…?" she breathed, seeing the unconscious animal lying on her lap.

Shigure and Ayame sprang to help her. Shigure helped Tohru to her feet while Ayame cradled the rabbit in his arms, hoping he would wake up, or even transform soon. Judging by his heartbeat, he had used all of his energy trying to run here all by himself and it was obvious he was too tired to do anymore. All Momiji needed now was a rest. Akito marched up to Hatori, who was still dumbfounded by what had happened. His foot plunged into his stomach, sending the doctor about a meter from where he once was and now looking crippled in pain. "This is your fault! If you hadn't have tried to stall, we'd have gotten rid of that bitch!"

"Akito!" Shigure said, firmly, allowing Tohru to support herself as he walked up to him. "Isn't this enough? Tohru has never harmed any of us and wouldn't dream of it either. All because of your desire to shut her away from us, Momiji had now lost consciousness. Can't you just leave her alone?"

"So now you've turned against me for _her_? Is she yournew lover?" Akito asked with his voice cold and harsh.

Shigure sighed, a serious look in his eyes. "Of course not. You are the only one I love, Akito."

_What the fuck?!_ Kyo thought to himself. _'New lover', 'the only one I love'? What in hell is going on?_ He glanced at Yuki to see if he was the only one lost in this conversation. Yuki was just as confused as he was. Were they really _gay_? Tohru had rushed to Hatori's aid as he lay there groaning in agony. "Hatori, is there anything I can-?"

"No," she stated, struggling to sit up, holding his stomach. "It's nothing serious." He wouldn't even look at her, not after what he had said.

There came another _poof_. Ayame quickly removed his long jacket to cover Momiji and carry him upstairs as the others continued. "I love you, Akito… but I can't agree with what you're doing. No one here deserves to be put through this torture."

Akito glared at him for a moment but the dog did the same with equal intensity. A firm fist struck Shigure on the face, hard but not hard enough to knock him off of his feet; Shigure was sure Akito hadn't hit him with full force or he would be bleeding. The dog looked him straight in the eye, his completely expressionless. He grabbed Akito by the head and pulled him to his lips viciously. Kyo couldn't help but feel sick and Yuki didn't think he could ever look at Shigure the same way again. Then again, what made it worse was finding out that Akito was 'gay'. Shigure pulled him away, still holding his head in his hands and looking deep into his eyes before he finally found his voice again. "Get out of my house, Akito."

Tohru was still denying the fact that Hatori didn't need any help but insisted he was fine. "Besides, it's not me you should be worrying about," he continued as Yuki and Kyo gathered beside Tohru. "… Momiji's memory has been erased…"

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see what a sick and twisted mind I have? And I _smiled_ coming up with this?! What is the world coming too?! Nothing, actually – I just love leaving cliff-hangers…


	18. forgotten

It seems a lot of people thought that last chapter was the last – have no fear!

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Momiji was taken up to rest in Shigure's bed. As soon as Hatori had told them that Momiji's memory had been erased, Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru rushed upstairs to him. Tohru was still in shock that he had taken the blow instead of her… now all his memories had been erased. Her heart sank as she remembered what he had said to her about not wanting to forget anything, good or bad. But he risked that all for her sake. Tears stung her eyes as guilt welled up inside of her. That innocent little boy had saved her and now he was unconscious and even when he does wake up, he won't remember any of them. How could she let this happen?

Yuki, however, was only angry at himself for not being able to move when Tohru needed him most. Now Momiji had to suffer because of it. He hated himself even more for this. _Next time, I won't hold back… 'Next time', listen to me! There may not be a next time and it's my fault…_ he convinced himself. Momiji was brave enough to do that for Tohru but he couldn't just because of Akito. His fingers twitched with the desire to scratch out his own eyes. He clenched them into a fist, trying to resist. Yuki mentally cursed himself, hoping that would subdue the urge to harm himself but it didn't help much.

Shigure had brought up a damp cloth for Momiji's head. He was acting as if Akito had never been here, even though he knew he would be in big trouble for this. It didn't matter to him as long as everyone else was safe. He smiled as he wrung the cloth, occasionally glancing over at Ayame for reassurance.

The doctor had a hold of Momiji's wrist, constantly checking that his pulse as normal, the same emotionless expression plastered over his face; though, he wasn't even concentrating properly since he had so much to think about. He didn't want to remember what he had said to Tohru. That confession he made in front of everyone. He felt like an idiot because of it and she didn't even seem to care. What must he have looked like to her? _I love you…_ the dumbest thing anyone could ever say! Well, what's done is done. He couldn't undo the past – though that didn't stop him from hoping. Or perhaps she didn't hear him? Tohru would never usually act like that so maybe what he had told her didn't get through.

"Such a depressing atmosphere!" Ayame whined. He was the only one acting normally – well, normal for his standards, anyway. "What about the prince and princess? Are we all just going to forget about them?"

"Ayame," Yuki began. "Now is not the time for your pathetic games. Can't you see that Momiji's lost his memory and is now unconscious?"

"Ha'ri! Yuki's being mean to-!"

"Shut up, Ayame. You know Yuki's right." He said, not taking his eyes off Momiji for a second.

Kyo couldn't take the mood in room. It was making him feel more and more aggressive by the second and he certainly didn't want to hurt anyone with Tohru around since she'd just get even more upset. Taking a deep breath, the cat marched to the door; sliding it open angrily so it made a sharp _shud!_ Tohru jumped at the sound and turned quickly to find that he had left. Of course she knew where he was going he battled in her mind whether or not she should stay in case Momiji awoke or go see if Kyo was okay? She just didn't know what to do. "Yuki?" she asked.

"Uh, yes, miss Honda?" he answered.

"Um, would you mind telling me if Momiji waked up, please?"

Yuki smiled that comforting smile of his. "Of course."

Tohru said thank you and hurried out to where she knew Kyo would be. And she was right; Kyo was lying flat on the roof with his hands behind his head, staring up at the sky. She tried to get herself up quietly and unnoticeably but, unfortunately, she stumbled forwards, creating a small thud. Kyo sighed, getting angrier and angrier, but he couldn't deny the fact that having Tohru there was more of a comfort. "What do you want?" he asked, a little more harshly than he had intended.

"Um…" she began, afraid she may have made him really mad already. "… I came to see how you were. You just stormed out of the room so suddenly."

He hated the fact that he had mixed emotions for her. "so what? Who cares how I am? You know I come up here to be alone."

"I… I care." She knew he wanted to be alone but couldn't leave with him thinking no one cared. "I don't want you to bottle everything up. It's not healthy."

His heart skipped a beat. She cared? No one had ever said that to him and really meant it. He sat up straight and looked her in the eyes. She was still as cheerful as ever, just so he would maybe cheer up a little. That look suddenly made him want to melt. The first time he had attempted to kiss her was completely ruined. It didn't matter anymore. He had been given a second chance! He leant closer to her, drawing their lips together and-

"miss Honda!" Yuki called, suddenly popping his head over the side of the roof and staring both hurt and confused at seeing Kyo's face so close to Tohru's. "uh…" he tried. "… Momiji's beginning to wake up – come quickly!"

Tohru quickly stood up in excitement. Momiji had finally woken up! Kyo was left alone again and deadly pissed off. Every time. Every fucking time!

When she arrived in Shigure's room and saw the boy still had his eyes closed but was easing himself up. She ran to the side of the bed and watched. "M-Momiji?" she said.

Momiji's eyes fluttered open and turned towards her. "… who are you?"

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aren't I so mean? Momiji doesn't remember anything, Kyo didn't get his kiss and everyone is being mean to Ayame! Aw!

Review if you like, flame if you don't – you're still special, just like me, but I'm special in more ways than one.


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